Millennium Park
Chicago, Illinois
11:36 AM
Chicago, Illinois
11:36 AM
The smell of hotdogs cooking filled the air. A breeze ruffled the grandmother's hair, and the flame wavered for a moment before steadying. She watched the meat on the grill with a critical eye as it sizzled and popped. It was pretty hard to screw up hot dogs, but it also wasn't easy to get them
just
right, especially with picky grandsons. The sounds of five rambunctious teenagers approached as they came in from playing volleyball with some erstwhile friends they'd met earlier that morning. She'd kept an eye on them in the distance while reading one of her stories, but she was ready to spend some quality time with her boys. Their parents were enjoying a day off. She'd insisted on giving her three children and their spouses a day off every month, watching the boys. For their sanity, she told them, but the truth was that it was because she wanted more time with them. One or the other of her son and two daughters were talking about moving out of the Chicago area all the time, and she wanted to give them a reason to stay, or at least make the most of what time she had left with them.The arthritis in her joints ached as she turned the hot dogs. There, they were done. She knew she didn't have much time left. She'd had kids late, and her own had been too consumed with careers to settle down themselves until their thirties. Now the boys were all in their teens. She'd lost their grandfather four years before, and knew her own time was closer than she'd like. She put the wieners in buns and plated them, carrying them over to the picnic table. Her boys were waiting. "Flavor Leaf, Dannflor, here are some nice pink dogs for you. jjh927, Dr. Easy Bake, charred and inedible. And one for you, Ostentatious, browned but not burnt. Enjoy."